Pacers Lose Tyrese Haliburton to a Hamstring Strain After Going Plus-19 in His 132 Minutes

Photo: NBA.com. Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers guard, official NBA headshot.

The Pacers' official injury report at 12:30 p.m. ET listed Tyrese Haliburton as questionable (left hamstring tightness) for Wednesday's home game against Philadelphia. ESPN's Shams Charania then reported the injury is a left hamstring strain and that Haliburton will miss time. He is four games into his return from the torn Achilles that cost him all of 2025-26. Indiana was plus-19 in Haliburton's 132 minutes and minus-13 in the 60 he sat (by our count, four games), and Nembhard and McConnell are also hurt.

There is no timeline yet. Pacers doctors and Haliburton are still working one out, per ESPN.

Four games of the old Haliburton

The return looked like the player Indiana built around. Haliburton averaged 21.8 points, 9.5 assists and 4.5 rebounds on 52% shooting in 33 minutes a night, per ESPN. He made 10 of 27 threes, 37%, per the ESPN box scores. He went 23 and 12 in the opening win over New Orleans and 24 and 10 in the 136-109 win over Brooklyn, where he was plus-29 in 31 minutes.

His 38 assists were about a third of the team's 117 across the four games, by our count. Pascal Siakam has carried the scoring at 23.5 points a game, with 16 assists in those four games.

The 60 minutes without him

Here is the split, built from the four ESPN box scores. There was no overtime, so each game is 48 minutes.

| Game | Haliburton min | Haliburton +/- | Pacers margin | Margin without him | |---|---|---|---|---| | at New Orleans, W 123-120 | 34 | -4 | +3 | +7 | | vs. Dallas, L 105-121 | 32 | 0 | -16 | -16 | | at Brooklyn, W 136-109 | 31 | +29 | +27 | -2 | | at Milwaukee, L 102-110 | 35 | -6 | -8 | -2 | | Total | 132 | +19 | +6 | -13 |

Minutes are rounded in the box score, so the 60-minute bench window is approximate. Margins and splits are our count.

Four games is a small sample, and the Brooklyn blowout carries much of the plus side. In the Dallas loss he was even in 32 minutes, and Indiana lost the other 16 by 16. The Pacers won 19 games last season without him, the fewest in franchise history, per ESPN.

Who brings it up now

Andrew Nembhard and T.J. McConnell are Indiana's other point guards, and both are on the injury report.

Nembhard missed Monday's game in Milwaukee and is questionable Wednesday with neck soreness, per the league's injury report. McConnell has a right hamstring strain and has not played this season. Ben Sheppard tore his left meniscus, and Johnny Furphy had surgery on his right ACL, per ESPN. Ivica Zubac is out Wednesday with a left ankle sprain.

In Monday's loss at Milwaukee, with Nembhard out, Quenton Jackson played 27 minutes and had four assists. Indiana went 13 of 48 from three and lost by eight, per the ESPN box. Two-way rookie Braden Smith has not logged a minute in four games, per the ESPN boxes.

The Achilles question underneath

Haliburton played a back-to-back Sunday and Monday and said afterward he felt "a little beat up," per ESPN. A hamstring strain is a different injury from the torn Achilles. Before this month he had gone 16 months between games.

What to watch Wednesday

Indiana hosts Philadelphia at 7 p.m. ET. Haliburton is listed questionable (left hamstring tightness) on the official report, and Nembhard is questionable (neck soreness). The Pacers had not announced a starting lineup or a Haliburton timeline as of the 12:30 p.m. ET report.

Sources

• ESPN: Sources - Pacers' Tyrese Haliburton (hamstring) to miss time. Oct. 28, 2026. Left hamstring strain, no timeline yet, 21.8/9.5/4.5 on 52% in 33 minutes, the "a little beat up" quote, the Pacers' injury list and 19 wins in 2025-26.
• Shams Charania on X. Oct. 28, 2026, 1:36 p.m. ET. The original report.
• NBA.com: Official injury report, Oct. 28, 12:30 p.m. ET. Haliburton listed questionable with left hamstring tightness and Nembhard questionable with neck soreness. McConnell, Sheppard, Furphy and Zubac are listed out.
• ESPN box scores: at New Orleans, vs. Dallas, at Brooklyn, at Milwaukee. Minutes, plus-minus, assists and the on/off split.
• Heavy: Indiana Pacers make Tyrese Haliburton announcement before 76ers game. Oct. 28, 2026. The Pacers' own injury report post and Haliburton's 51.6% and 37.0% shooting splits.
• ESPN: Pacers 2026-27 schedule. The 2-2 record and Wednesday's 7 p.m. ET game with Philadelphia.

Figures marked "by our count" are the desk's own math from the linked ESPN box scores.